Nicktoons sets on-air fest

First of its kind to serve as launchboard for animators

Nicktoons, Nickelodeon’s 24-hour digital animation channel, has partnered with Frederator Studios and Animation magazine to create a new sort of sprocket opera: the Nicktoons Film Festival.

The first on-air fest of its kind will serve as a launchboard for independent animators hoping their work will be discovered.

Keith Dawkins, veep and general manager of Nicktoons, noted the festival has a “grassroots feel” in that it’s open to the public and encourages diversity. “It’s really for everyone — anyone who wants to get their work seen.”

Animators can download entry forms and apply to the fest at the Nicktoons Web site. A pre-selection jury, consisting of an assembly of Frederator Studios and Animation magazine staff, will select a number of animated shorts to be included in the fest’s broadcast. Nicktoons has set a 13-episode compilation series to launch Oct. 24.